In late 1939, just west of the village, the Germans built an infamous concentration camp where more than 110,000 people were imprisoned. The camp was liberated by the Soviet Red Army in May 1945. It has been estimated that around 85,000 prisoners died there over the course of those five years or so.

A museum on the site of the former concentration camp was established in 1962 where a large number of the former camp buildings have been preserved including the German commandant’s building, crematorium, barracks, and fences.